The Best Defense
by RicksIlsa
Summary: A/U- Nothing supernatural... Gabriel is mugged. He decides self-defense lessons might help him to feel more in control of his life, but the only lessons available at his gym are for ladies. Sam is the instructor and he is tired of dealing with men signing up for the class just to hit on vulnerable ladies. Destiel happens in the background. Sabriel is main pairing


A/N: This idea came to me last week, and probably deserves a greater fleshing out. As I already have like four WIPs I decided the only way I could do this would be as a one-shot, so here you have it. It has not been beta'd so please forgive the mistakes and enjoy.

* * *

 **The Best Defense**

Gabriel sighed in irritation as he reluctantly locked the door to his bakery. Apparently Castiel had better things to do than walk with him to the bank this evening. He found his annoyance over this funny as Gabriel had only started allowing Castiel to walk with him at his brother's insistence. Castiel had flipped out when he'd first learned that Gabriel walked the two blocks to the bank alone with the weekly deposit in his bag every Wednesday evening.

He had felt like a child when Castiel had insisted that he would accompany Gabriel on the weekly walk from then on. For two months his younger brother had been true to his word... until tonight. Gabriel looked back down at his phone, but there was still no response to the text he had sent an hour earlier. He couldn't wait any longer to leave or the bank would be closed before he got there.

Gabriel rolled his eyes and shoved his phone back into his pocket. This was ridiculous. He was a grown man and he could make it two blocks in the darkening twilight to the bank without getting into trouble. He had done it before, after all. Castiel was just a worry wart and Gabriel should not allow that to rub off on him. Even if he was carrying more cash on him tonight than he ever had before.

Rather than disturb him, the last thought made him grin. He had done it. Almost a year had passed since he had purchased a failing donut shop for next to nothing. Two months of refurbishing and he had reopened as The Heavenly Bakery and Coffee Shop. With free wi-fi and 30% off coffee discounts for students Gabriel found himself inundated with patrons, mostly college students wanting to use his back room for study sessions.

With this week's earnings, Gabriel had made back all the money he had put into the place. After this week he would actually have extra money left over when the bills and employees were paid. All in less than a year. His grin widened and he was unable to resist whistling a bit as he walked toward the bank.

The guy was dressed all in black and had a ski mask pulled down to hide his face. At least Gabriel thought it was a guy. Later when he was describing the attacker to a police officer, he admitted it had happened so fast he couldn't be completely sure about anything. There was no gun, knife or demand to hand over the money. There was nothing but fists that bruised his jaw, broke his nose, and split his lip open. After that, when he had fallen to ground barely conscious, there were booted feet that had broken three of his ribs.

* * *

Gabriel came too a few hours later in a hospital bed with an IV in his left arm, a small mask over his nose and mouth, and a warm floaty feeling that could only be from some really good narcotic pain medication. Castiel was seated on his right with a tight grip on his hand and a look of absolute self-loathing on his face.

"Gabe? Are you awake? How are you feeling?"

The questions came at him in a rush and all Gabriel could do was groan. It took some water and another dose of pain medication before he was able to finally say what he had been wanting to say since he had opened his eyes and seen his brother's face.

"This is not your fault."

Despite how weak and hurting his body was Gabriel made sure the words sounded strong and final. His little brother's big blue eyes filled and his face crumpled before letting his head fall forward to rest on Gabriel's, thankfully uninjured, thigh. Castiel's trench coat covered shoulders shook as he sobbed and Gabriel made shushing sounds as he carded his fingers through his brother's messy back hair.

* * *

Gabriel stayed at Castiel's house for the next two weeks recovering. The first night, Castiel had admitted to him the that he had recently started dating a new guy and the two had been so caught up in a heavy make out session that he hadn't realized what time it was and hadn't heard the chime of Gabriel's text.

"Really Cassie? The kissing was so good you couldn't hear your phone?" Gabriel asked with a teasing smirk.

Castiel blushed and looked down before confessing, "Well, the kissing was good, but the reason I didn't hear my phone was because it was in the pocket of my pants... which were in a different room at the time."

Gabriel laughed and then groaned at the pain in his ribs.

The next morning as they ate breakfast, Castiel's phone kept chiming that he had new text messages. Gabriel watched the pained look cross his brother's face at every one.

"So, can I ask what that's all about?"

Castiel sighed and shook his head.

"Okay, I can't ask, so I'll guess... It's super hot make-out guy who got you out of your pants?"

Castiel blushed and sighed again. "I ended it, but he doesn't seem to be accepting it."

"You ended it? Why? You were so enamored... Oh, no Cassie! No way! I told you what happened to me was not your fault and it's not Romeo's fault either..."

Castiel shook his head. "I know it's not my fault. I didn't throw the punches... And one of the nurses told me that even if I had been with you it probably wouldn't have deterred the guy. But I was so upset Gabe, they couldn't even tell me whether or not you would survive! When the hospital called and I remembered what day it was and how late it was... I may have said, or screamed a lot of really bad things I can't take back."

"You had a good reason to be upset. The guy would be a complete dick to hold anything you said that night against you," he reasoned.

Castiel hadn't shown much attraction to anyone in years and Gabriel could not allow his brother to use him as an excuse to end things before they could even really start.

"It's okay, Gabe. I needed to end it. I'm pretty sure I was much more into him than he was to me," Castiel said.

His phone chimed with yet another message and Gabriel lifted an eyebrow.

"Yeah, it looks like he's not into you at all."

Castiel sighed and finally turned his phone over to read the messages.

"He wants me to meet him for coffee."

Gabriel grinned.

"Good. Even if you don't get back together with the guy, you need to apologize to him. I know you and the longer you let it go, the worse you will feel."

Castiel stared at him in silence for a long minute before shaking his head and sending a quick response.

"You'll be okay by yourself for a little bit?"

"Of course. I've got these two little happy pills and a belly full of pancakes. Oh, and did you know netflix has all seven seasons of Buffy?"

* * *

 _2 Months Later_

"Don't come home too early."

Sam rolled his eyes as he searched the kitchen for his car keys.

"Can't you go back to his place tonight?" He groused as he moved around papers and dirty dishes in his search. Sharing a house with his brother made perfect financial sense, but it was times like this that that just didn't seem to be a good enough reason anymore.

"Dude! I just got the new bed delivered this morning. I have to break it in," Dean responded with smirk and jingled Sam's keys in his hand.

Sam snatched the keys out of his hand with a sigh of relief. He couldn't afford to be late again. Law student by day, aerobics instructor and personal trainer by night. He really needed to bring in as much money as he could to stay on top of things.

"Fine, I'll try to find something else to do after work. Just... maybe stay in your room with the door closed?" Sam asked as he grabbed his gym bag and headed for the door.

"No promises!"

* * *

Sam smiled a greeting at his co-worker, Charlie, as he hurried in the door to the gym. She held out a paper with a list of names, ages, and membership dates. It was the roster for the Ladies Self-Defense class that they would be co-teaching tonight.

Sam gave it a quick glance as they walked toward their scheduled activity room.

"Why is there always at least one guy who signs up?" He asked with a groan.

"Maybe this one will be different," she said with a shrug.

Sam gave her a look.

"What? I mean I know the last two were just creeps trying to scam on vulnerable women, but the guy before that was a sweetie."

Sam rolled his eyes, and handed the list back to her. He didn't like having to confront the last two jerks and throw them out. Sam did not like confrontations, but he absolutely detested the look of fear in the eyes of the women the guys had been hitting on.

He put a fake smile on and pushed open the door. A small group had already gathered and were chatting as he and Charlie went in and set up.

A few minutes later it seemed everyone had arrived and were ready to begin. Charlie did a quick roll call and Sam looked over the crowd. Most were younger women that looked excited to be learning self defense, but there were a few who appeared to be kind of timid and even one who had tried to cover a bruise on her cheek with make-up, but had not done a very good job. The one male, a Gabriel Novak, seemed to gravitate toward her and struck up a quiet conversation. Sam watched them very carefully, but so far the woman appeared to be calm and even gave the man a small smile.

A flirt. Great. He would just have to keep a careful eye on the situation. As Charlie began the introduction speech, Sam's mind wandered. Novak. There was something familiar about the guy's last name, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why that was...

"..Sam." Charlie ended her part and Sam smiled and stepped forward to introduce himself. It had been Charlie's idea that Sam end his intro with a quip about how the women didn't have to worry about him hitting on them as he only batted for the other team. At that Charlie would then interject that she could make no such promise.

It served a dual purpose. Sam was very tall and very built and though he tried to smile and act gentle, there were always women that were too intimidated by him. Knowing from the get-go that he was not going to try to get in their pants went a long way to put them at ease. His looks also inspired some of the braver ones to try their hand at getting into his pants and his declaration helped to keep that at bay as well. Sam was comfortable in his sexuality, though not currently in a relationship. Between school and work he really didn't have the time, though if he found the right guy, he could definitely make the time.

The woman with the bruised cheek seemed to relax even more at his announcement, though the guy sitting next to her was looking at him in fascination with wide gold-ish colored eyes. Sam looked back at Charlie and gestured for her to begin. Novak continued to stare at him until Sam sent him a quick glare. The guy was probably homophobic. Well, now that he knew both his instructors were gay, maybe he wouldn't come back next class, and Sam would haven't to worry about him anymore.

As the class progressed, Sam became more and more uncomfortable. The guy was very flirty, and though some of the woman rolled their eyes, they tended to look at the guy with exasperation but not fear. Still, Sam got the feeling he was bothering them and that something probably needed to be done.

"Oh, no Sam! I know that look! What are you planning?" Charlie demanded while they were on a five minute break.

"Nothing special. Just make sure he's paired with me when we start the more physical stuff," he said.

"I think you need to wait before you do anything drastic," she said with a frown.

"I'm not going to hurt him, Charlie! Just make sure he knows to behave appropriately in this class," he insisted.

She didn't look convinced, but didn't say anything else about it.

A little while later, everyone was paired up and about to practice some basic defensive maneuvers on each other. Most of the women did more giggling than practicing.

Sam led Gabe a little away from the group for them to practice.

"So, should I run at you?" He asked with a flirty grin.

Sam frowned at him.

"No, you're the one here to learn. You really should be taking this more seriously," he chastised.

Gabriel's eyes narrowed at that and he shrugged.

"Okay. I'm ready," he said.

Sam knew that he should probably go over the counter move Gabriel was supposed to do again, but for some reason he really wanted take the guy down a peg. Which was ridiculous if he really thought about it. The guy may be chatty and a little flirty but Sam couldn't say for sure that the guy was really annoying anyone... but him.

It had been a long day beginning with waking up late after a poor night's sleep, a bad test grade, no lunch, dealing with this guy, and the thought that no matter how much he might want to just go home and relax he still had to deal with the fact that his brother would be banging his boyfriend down the hall. The frustrations bubbled up and when he lunged at Gabriel, he moved faster and gripped him harder than he should have for a first time practice.

The smaller man let out a gasp of pain and Sam immediately released him stepping back with an apology on his lips. One glance at the real terror in Gabriel's eyes had Sam suddenly speechless. He was immediately hit by just how wrong he had been. The guy wasn't there to pick up chicks. The sound he made and the placement of Sam's hands suggested recently mended ribs. But the fear... the guy had obviously been attacked.

Sam again tried to say something, but Charlie called everyone back to the center of the room and Gabriel practically ran to get away from him. Sam felt awful and was determined to talk to the guy after class, but while he was helping Charlie demonstrate another move he heard the door open and saw the back of the guy as he quickly left.

Charlie glared, but didn't say anything until class had ended twenty minutes later.

"Sam, wha-"

Sam shook his head at her.

"I know, I screwed up. I was going to talk to him after class but..."

"Well, that's probably the last we'll see of him," she said sadly and turned to start cleaning up. Sam helped her then hurried to the main gym. He had one personal training session to get through before he could go home. Suddenly that was all he wanted to do. Even if it mean blasting music through his head phones so he didn't have to hear the moans and thuds that would no doubt be coming from his brother's room.

* * *

"Dean? I'm home," he called as he walked in the door. The sound of muffled laughter and thumping from down the hall told him that Dean and Cas were already 'breaking in' the new bed. He walked into the kitchen and tossed his keys on the counter, scowling at the trail of clothing that lead to the bedrooms. Then he smiled and grabbed one of the still-hot and full containers of Chinese food that sat untouched on the table. Apparently the excitement of the new bed prompted them to skip dinner. Their loss was his gain.

He got a beer from the fridge and then settled at the table with his dinner. He sighed and finally began to relax for the first time all day, effectively pushing Gabriel Novak out of his mind. Then he heard the phone ring.

It was a different ring tone than he or Dean had, so it only took a second to realize that it had to be Cas's. He would have just let it go to voice mail, but he remembered the incident that had almost ended Cas and Dean's relationship before it began. Apparently Cas's brother had tried to reach him and his phone was in the other room. Completely unrelated to that, his brother got mugged the same night. Cas had freaked out and tried to end things with Dean, but saw reason when the dust settled.

He finally found the cell phone in the pocket of a pair of jeans in the hall. He dropped it when he saw the picture that identified the caller. It was Gabriel Novak. That was why the last name had seemed familiar. Novak was Cas's last name. Shit. Gabriel who had been mugged two months ago and had obviously decided to sign up for a self defense class to help get over it, and who Sam had treated like he was some leech only there to prey on the women. For a second he thought he was going to throw-up his stolen dinner, but suddenly the door to Dean's bedroom crashed open and Cas came running out with a small pillow held over his junk.

"My phone!" He grabbed it and answered quickly.

"Gabriel? Are you okay? Oh no, what happened? It's okay, I'll be there as soon as I can," he promised and hung up.

"The hell?" Dean moaned from the doorway of his room, not bothering with anything to hide his junk.

Sam forced himself to look Cas in the eyes.

"Gabriel is your brother?"

Cas nodded looking at him curiously.

Sam sighed. "I really messed up tonight."

* * *

Gabriel sat on the couch huddled under every blanket he could find. The shaking had finally started to get better after Castiel had told him he was coming. Gabriel felt so childish and embarrassed. The self defense class had obviously been a mistake.

It had taken almost two weeks before the nightmares had started. Now that he was completely off the pain killers and there was nothing to dull the terror and the paranoia had begun to follow him in the waking hours of the day. One of his employees had recommended the class after he had a mild freak-out at a 'sinister looking' customer. He had hoped that learning some basic defensive moves would help him to not be so afraid.

Twenty minutes after he hung up with Castiel, there was a knock on the door. He hurried to open it, not bothering to look through the peephole. He froze in shock when he saw that it was Sam the class instructor, and not his brother.

Sam held his hands up in an 'I'm harmless' gesture.

"Look, I was a real jerk today and I'm so sorry. You have every right to slam the door in my face right now, but I brought a peace offering and I was hoping I might get a few minutes to try and explain myself."

Sam fumbled in his bag and pulled out a small container of Cherry Garcia.

Gabriel opened and closed his mouth the fear leaving him as he wondered how this guy could possibly know what his favorite ice cream was.

"Cas told me," Sam explained as if reading his mind.

Gabriel still couldn't seem to find his voice, so he grabbed the ice cream out of Sam's hand and studied it. He opened the lid and dipped a finger in bringing it to his mouth. It was real. His eyes lifted to meet Sam's and he took a step back, startled at what looked like lust in the taller man's eyes. He cleared his throat then took another step back and gestured for Sam to enter.

Gabriel led the way to the kitchen, so confused. How did Sam know Cassie? Why would Cassie send Sam here when it was Sam that caused all of this? He walked to the refrigerator and put his ice cream away. He motioned for Sam to sit in one of the chairs at the table.

"Would you like a beer?" he asked, finally finding his voice.

"Uh, sure," Sam said.

Gabriel grabbed Sam's beer and pulled out a strawberry wine cooler for himself. He sat across from Sam and both sipped at their drinks in silence for a moment.

"So, uh, I guess first I want to apologize for our one on one session. I had a bad day and over the past few months we had two other guys that took the class for the purpose of hitting on vulnerable women. I know neither of those things is a good excuse for what I did, but I really didn't meant to hurt you. And I'm sorry for judging you so quickly and wrongly."

Gabriel took a deep swig of his drink and studied the extremely attractive man in front of him.

"Okay, I get it. You really were completely wrong about me. I'm gay, so none of the women needed to be protected from any sexual advances from me, but you didn't bother to find out before you... And how do you know my brother?"

Sam grinned sheepishly. "Well, apparently are brothers are dating."

Gabriel blinked as he processed that.

"You are Dean's brother?!"

Sam nodded and gave Gabriel a sheepish smile.

"Yeah, and I kinda heard about what happened to you a little while ago. Seriously man, I was so incredibly in the wrong here and I have no idea how to make things right."

Gabriel shrugged and stood up to get the ice cream out of the fridge.

"That kind of thing had never happened to me before. I mean, I'm not exactly a fit, sports loving guy, and I was in the cool crowd in high school, so I never had to learn how to take a punch. I didn't figure out that I was gay until college and everyone was so accepting it really wasn't a huge deal for me. The attack came out of nowhere. It was all about the money I had, and they still haven't caught the guy. I've been have nightmares and paranoid freak-outs at work for weeks. I thought that a self-defense class might help me take some control of my life back," he admitted, hesitating over the silverware drawer for a moment before pulling out two spoons.

They shared the ice cream in silence as they both thought over what to say next.

"It is a good idea. Knowing how to keep an attacker from hurting you should go a long way to lessen the anxiety that you're feeling. Can I ask why you decided to sign up for the ladies' class?" Sam asked.

"Well, it seemed less intimidating. And the co-ed one is only held once a year in the spring. As it's only September now it would be a really long wait," he responded with a shrug.

Sam nodded in understanding and the two continued eating the ice cream in silence until it was all gone.

"Thank you for coming, Sam. I do forgive you for today. I know I'm a special case and I know you weren't trying to be mean," Gabriel said getting to his feet.

Sam sighed and got to his feet as well.

"I wasn't. And, if it's any consolation, I did end up seeing a whole lot more of both of our brothers than I ever wanted too..." he confessed with a shudder.

Gabriel laughed and both of their moods changed.

"Well, if you don't want to risk being scarred for life again, I had planned on starting the sixth season of Buffy on netflix. You are welcome to join me, he said gesturing to the couch.

Sam smiled and nodded. "Ice cream and Buffy? Be careful, Gabe, this evening is turning out to be better than any date I've had in years."

When they started the episodes they were on opposite sides of the couch, but the time the musical episode came on, they were curled up together, sleeping soundly.

* * *

Sam began giving Gabriel private lessons on Sunday afternoons. They met their brother's for brunch Sunday mornings and then headed for the private room Sam kept reserved at the gym. It took almost a month before Gabriel was able to actually catch Sam off gaurd and throw him down to the mat. He took advantage of this achievement by straddling his opponent and kissing the breath from him. A few days later Gabriel invited Sam over for dinner. After eating he pounced, pinning Sam beneath him for the second time. He didn't stop at a kiss this time.

A few weeks later, Gabriel decided that weekly defense lessons were not enough. He presented Sam with a key to his apartment and asked him to take Gabriel on as a student every night.

Sam happily agreed, relieved that he would never have to worry about seeing Dean's junk again. And if he got spend every night with the love of his life in his arms, well, that was just icing on the cake.

* * *

Thanks for reading. I would love to hear what you thought.


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